latta



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. E. G. LATTA.

VBLOGIPBDE. No. 323,695. Patented Augyll, 1885.

N. PETERS, Phalo-Libnglapher, Washinginn, D. C,

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

, E'. G. LATTA.

VBLOGIPEDB.

No. 323,695. Patented Aug. 4, 1885.

i (No Model.)

4NiTEin STATES PATENT -EETCEO I EMMIT G. LATTA, OF FRIENSDHIP, NEV YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONEHALF TO ADRIAN O. LATTA, OF SAME PLACE. l

VELOCIPEDE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 323,695, dated August 4, 1885.

Application mea March 1o, isf-5. (No model.) A

Z'o all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, EMMIT G. LATTA, of Friendship, in the county of Allegany and C is an adjustable arm pivoted to the lower bent end b of each part of the fork B by a pivot-bolt, c, and provided above the lower State of New York, have invented new and i end of the fork with suit-able bearings, c', in

5 useful Improvements in Velocipedes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in that class of bicycles known as safety bicycles,7 in which the cranks are arranged be- IO low the center of the driving-wheel and connected to said wheel by endless chains and sprocket-wheels, and more particularly to bicycles of this class in which the driving mechanism is adjustable forwardly or back wardly,

for adjusting the machine for greater safety or for greater power, as may be desired.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of the adjustable driving mechanism in such manner that the desired adjustment can be effected instantly without stopping the machine or dismounting, and to increase the rigidity of the machine; and my invention consists to these ends of the improvements which will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, consisting of two sheets, Figure l is a side elevation of abicycle provided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is a cross-section on an enlarged scale inline x fr, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a crosssection on an enlarged scale of the adjusting device on one side of the driving-wheel in line y y, Fig. l. Fig. et is a cross-section on an enlarged scale in line z z, Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a 3 5 cross-section on an enlarged scale in line x x, Fig. 3. Fig. Gis a fragmentary longitudinal section of the jointed brace. Fig. 7 is a fragmentary sectional elevation of the driving mechanism with the driving-wheel adjusted 4o rearwardly. Figs. 8 and 9 are fragmentary side elevations showing modified constructions of the adjusting devices.

Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several gures. A represents the driving-wheel, a the hub thereof provided with chain or sprocketwheels c a,and an axle, a?, rigidly secured to the hub a.

B represents the fork, B the backbone, and 5o B2 the rear wheel.

which the axle a2 turns. These bearings may 55 be of any approved construction, and are shown as plain bearings in the drawings to simplify the sume. The arms Gare preferably provided w-ith a series of openings, c, iu either 0f which the bolt c can be placed, whereby 6o the fork B can be raised or lowered on the arms O, if desired, and thelower bent portion of the fork is preferably provided with a series of openings, b', in either of which the pivot-bolt c may be placed and whereby the f5 arms O can be raised and lowered on the fork,

i f desi red.

D D representthc driving-,chain or sprocket wheels arranged below the center of thedrivingwheel and support'ed on the adjustable 7o arms O.

d represents the endless chains which run around the wheels D D and c', and communicate motion from the former to the latter.

d represents the cranks secured to the outer ends of short shafts c, to the inner ends of which the crankwl'ieels D are secured. The shafts c are supported between the cranks and the crank-wheels in bearings c', which are adjust-ably secured to the arms C by clamps or 8o loops F, which embrace the arms C, and are movable on the same, and secured in position by set-screws f after being adjusted for tightening the chains.

. greprescntsthe pedals attached to the cranks D. The arms O are preferably bent inwardly between the two portions of each driving-chain to clear the screw-nnts whereby the pedals are secured to the cranks.

H is ajointcd brace arranged on each side 9o of the driving-wheel and connected at one end with asleeve or clamp, Lwhichissecured to the fork B, and pivoted at its other end to a bifurcated lng, J, which is formed on the upper end of the adjustable arm C above the bearing c of the driving-wheel. Thebraces H,on both sides of the driving-wheel,operate in the manner of toggle-j oints,and serve to hold the arms C and the driving mechanism supported thereon in either of two positions, and tot permit the position of the drivingwheel to be changed at the will of the rider. ,"shejointed braces H consist each of the following parts: h is an arm pivoted with its rear end to the clamp I, and provided on its front side witha forwardly-projecting stem, hf, which is surrounded by a cushion, It, formed of rubber or ol a suitable metallic spring. h is a link, provided on its rear side with an opening, It", in which the stem l1' slides, and pivoted with its t'ront end to a foot-lever, K, which is pivot ed in the bit'ureated lug J ot" the arm C. The arm /1 and the link It. are provided on their adjacent sides with flanges, between which the spring lift is seated.

In the position ot' the parts represented in Figs. l, 3, and 6, the foot-lever K, link h, Iand arm h stand in a straight line. or nearly so, and hold the driving-wheel atits greatest distance in front of the fork and ot' the riders seat. ln thispositiou of theparts the machine is best adapted to descend sharp grades or pass over rough ground. Then theriderdesires to adjust the machine t'or use on ordinary good roadshe raises the fronteuds ofthe footlevers Ii by placing his feet under thc footrests 7: ot" the foot-levers. whereby the rear ends ot' the levers K are depressed, carrying with them the front ends of the links 11,3, Iand changing the parts totheposition represented in Fig. 7. In ett'ecting this change otl position the links l1 turn with the arlns ,.and the parts come to rest when the t'ront end ot' the link It strikes the rear side of the lug J. In this position ot" the parts the drivingwheel is nearer the fork and more directly under the riders seat than in the position represented in Fig. 1, and the crank-wheels l) have been moved forwardly by the turning movement ot' the arms C on their pivots, and are new more directly under the center ofthe drivingwheel. ln order to return the parts te the position representml in Fig. l.. itis only necessary to press down the front ends of the levers I( by placing the. feet upon the footrests 7.'. The downwai d movement oti the front ends ot' the levers K is limited by the lugs J, and when the levers K are arrested by the lugs J the bolts which connect the levers with the links 71.,are slightly above a line drawn through the points at which the levers Ii and arms l1v are pivoted, so that the weight of the rider will tend to hold the parts in this position. In either position of the. drivingwheel a great part of the weight ol' the rider rests upon the spring 112, and when the wheel strikes an obstruct-ion, the spring, lyi ng almost in a direct line between the part of the wheel which strikes and the rider, relieves the concussion and avoids considerable vibrations of the machine.

In the position of the parts represented in Fig. l, thev crankv'heels are arranged well `back under the rider, which affords a greater leverage to prevent a forward fall. should he back-pedal in going down hill, and enables the rider to lean forward on his seat and stand erect on the pedals in mounting a steep hill, which is more comfortable, and enables him to apply his weight to better advan tage than is possible with the cranks in their forward position.

By raising the clamps I on the fork, or changing the position of the pivot-bolt e so that the foot-levers K and link It. will not quite straighten out when the foot-levers are depressed, the driving-wheel will only remain in its forward position so long as the foot-levers are depressed, and upon releasing the footlevers the parts return te the position represented in Fig. 6 by the weight of the rider. Such an adjustment of the parts is desirable when the cranks are set well back in their forward position and the rider wishes additional safety in coasting.

The rear ends of the arms (l are bent upward] y, and connected by a bow, L, which extends around the rear part of the tllriving wheel. This bow L stiii'ens the arms Cagainst torsional and lateral movements, and enables them to be made lighter, and causes both arms to move simultaneously on their pivots. rlhe loop L is curved orinclincd upwardly, as represented in Fig. 1, to enable the machine to pass over obstructions without causing the loop to come in contact therewith. The bow may be formed in one piece,wit1h the arms G C, as represented in the drawings; or it may be a separate piece, permanently or removably attached to the arms.

l represents a step secured to the bow L on one side of the driving-wheel A. rlhe step l IOO is formed with an adjustable clamp, Z', which embraces the bar ofthe bow L, to which it is secured by a tightening-scrtnv, Zt, so that the step can be attached to the bow in the most convenient position.

rPhe front ends ot' the foot-levers K may be connected by a similar bow extending around the front portions ot' the drivingwheel, if desired, whereby both levers can be operated with one foot and the rigidity ot' the machine will be somewhat increased.

The jointed braces II will operate in the manner described by omitting the parts ofthe levers K which extend forwardly from their pivots; but in that ease the adjustment can not be. effected without dismounting.

In the modified construction represented in Fig. S the arms C G and bow L form a downward and rearward continuation of the forkarms B, and the driving-wheel is journaled in arms m, whiclrare pivoted to the arms C, and adjusted by the jointed braces I'I'in the same manner that the arms C are adjusted in the construction previously described.

In the construction represented in Fig. 8 the crank-wheels are not adjusted when the driving-wlieel is adjusted, while in the construction previously describcd both the driving-wheel and the crank-wheels are adjusted simultaneously. Each ofthe arms m is pro- IIO " vided with a series of holes, in either of which the pivot-bolt m can be placed, whereby the driving-wheel can be raised in the fork for good roads or be lowered for muddy roads. Upon adjusting the driving-wheel the crankwheels are adjusted on the arms C by means ofthe sliding clamp F. rllhe arms m,on oppo site sides of the drivingwheel, may be connected by a bow extending around the upper portion of the wheel in convenient reach of the riders hand. The pivot-bolt m is arranged midway between the forward and backward positions of the driving-wheel on aline drawn through the center of the crank-wheel, and in changing the position of the wheel the slack of the driving-chain permits the arm to turnr over on its pivot, when the chain will run again as freely as before.

In the construction represented in Fig. 9 the driving-wheel is journaled in the forkarms B, and the crank-wheels D only are made adjustable by means of the jointed braces H, which are in this case attached to the arms C below the center of the driving-wheel, and to extensions n of the fork-arms B, which project below the center of the driving-wheel.

The adjustable support for the dri vi ng-whcel maybe applied to bicycles which have not the endless-chain driving-gear for the purpose of moving the driving-wheel forwardly to a position of greater safety in descending hills, or back ward] y under the rider in mounting hills.

I claim as my inventionl. The combination, with the driving-wheel and fork-arms, of pivoted supporting-arms, and a toggle-joint whereby the supporting'- arms are locked in position, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the driving-wheel, fork-arms, and crankdvheels, of pivoted arms supporting the driving-wheels and crankwheels, and a toggle-joint whereby the pivoted supporting-arms are locked in position, Substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the drivingwheel u and fork-arn1s,of the pivoted supportingarms, the jointed locking-brace H, and the foot-lever K, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the driving-wheel and fork-arms, of the pivoted supporting-arms, and a jointed locking-brace, H, composed of the arm Vh and link 713, capable of a sliding 7. The combination, with the driving-wheel and fork-arms, of pivoted supporting-arms, and a locking toggle-joint provided with a spring or cushion, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination, with the driving-wheel and fork-arms, of the pivoted supporting-arms, and a jointed brace, H, composed of the arm h and link ha, provided with an interposed spring, h2, substantially as set forth.

9. The combination, with the driving-wheel and fork-arms, of the pivoted arms C, provided with upward extensions J, levers K, pivoted to said extensions, and the jointed braces H, connecting the levers K with the fork-arms, substantially as set forth.

10. The combination, with the drivingwheel and fork arms, of the pivoted arms C, provided with upward extensions J, levers K, pivoted to said extensions, the jointed braces H, attached to said levers, and the adj ustable clamps I, connecting the braces H to the fork-4 Vitnesses:

F. B. CHURCH, J. F. RICE. 

